August 14, 2018
National Security: President Signs CFIUS Reform Legislation
Yesterday, President Trump signed into law the Foreign Risk Review Modernization Act – which is intended to strengthen the ability of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to address national security risks posed by certain foreign investments. Here’s an excerpt from this Latham memo summarizing the statute’s key provisions:
– The new legislation extends CFIUS’ jurisdiction to cover non-controlling investments in the areas of critical infrastructure, critical technology, and sensitive personal information.
– The new law alters CFIUS review procedures, authorizes filing fees, and provides for greater resources for CFIUS that may allow for both increased flexibility regarding mitigation and for more active monitoring of transactions not filed.
– The new law requires certain foreign investments in the United States to be submitted to CFIUS for review.
– Forthcoming regulations will determine crucial details of the new law’s implementation, including the regulatory specification of statutory terms such as “emerging and foundational technologies,” relevant to the jurisdictional boundaries of the new law.
We’re posting lots of memos in our “National Security Considerations” Practice Area.
– John Jenkins